Twitter

EU bank supports agricultural sector in Malawi

The European Investment Bank (EIB) today announced a new EUR 30 million facility for the financing of private sector projects in Malawi with the National Bank of Malawi (NBM). The initiative, developed together with USAID and ACE, will enhance the access to finance for private sector companies and will primarily target the development of agricultural storage capacity in the country. As such it will contribute to key developmental priorities of Malawi, including private sector development, increased food security and reduction of poverty. Another main priority is support for higher resilience towards climate change by mitigating food supply volatility due to adverse weather events. “The lack of agricultural storage facilities has been an issue for the development of the agriculture sector in Malawi”, said Robert Schofield, head of the EIB’s Global Partners’ Financial Sector Division, “The EIB facility aims to address this issue to the benefit of the farmers as well as the Malawian authorities by improving market transparency and providing information for a more efficient agriculture policy.” “This facility will bring in EUR 30 million worth of new agro storage assets which will greatly reduce post-harvest losses in Malawi and help in improving national development.” says NBM’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr George Partridge.